SeaStar Seals

SeaStar hydraulicsteering system is the most common steering system found on outboard motors. The Yamaha system is the same and Uflex is very similar and for our purposes the same system. It is a good system but as with any hydralic system, the weakness is in the shaft seals. If you have a boat with hydraulicsteering, you WILL need to replace the cylinder seals at some point.

First signs of failure is oil leaking from the cylinder, on the piston rod and transom. One air gets into the cylinder you will feel vague or spongy steering. If left to disrepair, you will damage the cylinder and even loose steering. Not something to mess with. Once the seals start to leak, know that they are not going to get better, best to do it now and save time and money later.

At the shop this is a $500 job and of course, the shop may not work into your boating schedule so DIY is the way to go to get yourself back on the water.

The first video in this series will go over the teardown process and replacement of the worn seals. We will do a follow up video soon to show you how to manually blead the system after reassembly.